Chapter 338
He's Seriously Too Good at Pretending
Zane Cole's gaze was too intense. As if sensing something, Julian Sterling turned around and saw Zane standing in the doorway.
Claire Bennett also noticed that Zane had arrived, and a smile appeared on her face. "Zhouzhou, you're here."
Hearing how Claire addressed Zane, Julian's eyes darkened heavily.
She called him so intimately, making it obvious that the relationship between the two of them was anything but simple.
For no reason, a wave of sourness surged up in his heart. He felt a little unhappy, as if someone else had their eye on something precious that belonged to him. But he had always been someone who never showed his emotions on his face, so no matter how unhappy he was, he would not reveal it.
Zane walked in as if nothing was wrong.
He looked at Claire and said softly, "Claire, I've already worked out the next stage of treatment for Aunt Qing. Once you confirm the plan, we can begin."
Claire naturally trusted Zane and immediately nodded. "Okay, let's confirm it right now and start treating my mother as soon as possible."
She hoped her mother could wake up sooner.
Right after that, Claire and Zane went out to sign the treatment agreement, agreeing to leave Megan Shaw Bennett's treatment entirely in Zane's hands.
Watching Claire sign her name, Zane said, "Although there's a chance Aunt Qing may wake up, no one can say for sure when that will happen. And the longer the treatment goes on, the higher the medical costs will be..."
"Money isn't a problem." Julian suddenly spoke up and cut Zane off.
He lifted his eyes to Zane and said evenly, "I'll cover all of my mother-in-law's medical expenses. Just contact me for however much is needed."
Zane shot Julian an irritated glare, feeling more than a little displeased.
What was this man butting in for?
He had brought up the money issue to show his generosity. Originally, he had planned to tell Claire that Megan Shaw Bennett's medical fees would be waived, but Julian had jumped out and shoved himself into the middle of it, making it look like he was some petty cheapskate nickel-and-diming Claire over money.
Given his relationship with Claire, would he really care about this little bit of money?
When Claire heard that, she froze for a moment, then said, "Your payroll card is with me, so where do you even have money to pay for this? I'll cover it myself. Don't worry about it."
Julian looked at Claire with gentle eyes and said in a doting low voice, "It's okay. At worst, I'll just go pick up another part-time job."
Zane: "..."
A stifled anger rose in his chest, and his teeth itched with hatred. Julian was such an old fox. He was seriously too good at pretending!
He was clearly President Sterling of Sterling International, a wealthy man worth over a hundred million, yet in front of Claire he was actually pretending to be poor!
So the reason Julian was hiding his identity was to win Claire's sympathy, wasn't it?
Sure enough, after hearing Julian's words, Claire's face filled with emotion and heartache. She looked at him steadily and shook her head. "You don't have to work that hard. I can make money too."
"It's not hard. This is what I should do."
Zane's teeth were already grinding audibly.
These two were shamelessly showing off their love right in front of him, with absolutely no regard for whether he lived or died!
He gave a light cough and cut off their conversation. "Ahem... everything I just said was only to let you know the situation. I'll give you a discount on the medical fees."
"No!" Claire refused at once. She said seriously, "I'm already very grateful that you're willing to treat my mother. I have to pay the medical fees."
Julian also chimed in, "We as husband and wife won't stiff you on the medical bills."
Zane's face darkened again. He had the distinct feeling Julian was reminding him that he and Claire were husband and wife, while he was just an outsider!
Claire and Julian left the hospital.
Julian hadn't driven there, so they took a cab straight back to Claire's apartment.
As soon as they went inside, Claire immediately started packing her things.
She was about to return to Chicago and go back to being a working stiff, and she had also signed up for the competition to become the person in charge of Maison Verne, which would be starting very soon. After putting some clothes into her suitcase, Claire seemed to think of something. She lifted her eyes to Julian and asked, "Oh right, where's your luggage?"
"At the hotel," Julian casually made up an excuse.
Claire nodded. "I'm going back to Chicago the day after tomorrow. Are you going back with President Sterling, or are you coming with me?"
Julian's eyes darkened slightly. "President Sterling already gave me time off, so I can go back with you."
Hearing Julian's words, Claire felt a little happy inside.
Being alone and having someone by your side felt completely different. It was great that he could go back with her.
Then she suddenly thought of something and said regretfully, "Sigh, it's just a pity we don't have much time. Otherwise I could've shown you around New York a little. You've been in Chicago all this time, so you're probably not very familiar with New York, right?"
Julian nodded along with what she said.
In reality, before he met Claire, he had spent nearly half of every month in New York, so he really wasn't unfamiliar with it at all.
But in front of Claire, he still had to keep it hidden.
Julian said, "It's okay. Next time, if we get the chance, I'll bring you here."
The moment she heard that, Claire beamed.
She and Julian really hadn't traveled together before. Aside from that one camping trip, they hadn't had any other chances to go out. If she could go traveling with him, with just the two of them, the very thought of it felt absolutely wonderful.